Has anyone brewed with dandelions before?
-
Lecturepioneer
Has anyone brewed with dandelions before?
I was thinking about doing a bit of foraging and making some dandelion beer or wine. Has anyone used dandelions in a brew before, or could anyone recommend a recipe?
-
oldbloke
- Under the Table
- Posts: 1375
- Joined: Fri Jul 16, 2010 9:29 am
- Location: Todmorden, Wet Yorks
Re: Has anyone brewed with dandelions before?
Dandelion wine is one of the old standards. I just started some today.
Collect about a gallon bucket full of heads. More if you can. Fully open in sun so they have all the flavinoids etc in the petals. Take them home.
Dissolve your sugar in some hot water (I chose to use 2lb10oz today) and while it's cooling, spend 45 minutes or so with the kitchen scissors getting the petals into a fermenting vessel. A bit of green doesn't matter but NO STALK
Pour your sugar solution over that, add a crushed Campden.
Today I chose to add 1/3tsp citric and 2/3tsp tartaric. A lot of recipes suggest the juice and zest of a couple of oranges. I might add some more acid later.
I also added 1/2tsp wine tannin and 4oz chopped sultanas. Recipes vary...
That lot gets left for about 4 days then it's strained into a demijohn and the yeast gets pitched.
It makes a nice white with a vaguely peppery hint to the flavour, and supposedly has "tonic properties"
Collect about a gallon bucket full of heads. More if you can. Fully open in sun so they have all the flavinoids etc in the petals. Take them home.
Dissolve your sugar in some hot water (I chose to use 2lb10oz today) and while it's cooling, spend 45 minutes or so with the kitchen scissors getting the petals into a fermenting vessel. A bit of green doesn't matter but NO STALK
Pour your sugar solution over that, add a crushed Campden.
Today I chose to add 1/3tsp citric and 2/3tsp tartaric. A lot of recipes suggest the juice and zest of a couple of oranges. I might add some more acid later.
I also added 1/2tsp wine tannin and 4oz chopped sultanas. Recipes vary...
That lot gets left for about 4 days then it's strained into a demijohn and the yeast gets pitched.
It makes a nice white with a vaguely peppery hint to the flavour, and supposedly has "tonic properties"